Flames flatten former zoo building in Cambridge’s Riverside Park

Firefighters were called at 8:50 p.m. to the park near the new BMX bike playground, said Platoon Chief Brad Grimwood of the Cambridge fire department.

Flames were through the roof of the building when firefighters arrived. It once housed bears in a small zoo in the park. The building was currently being used to store parks department equipment, Grimwood said.

Nobody was injured.

Fire department investigators and Waterloo Regional Police are looking for a cause.

“I can’t say it’s a suspicious fire yet, but I can say there was no gas or electricity to the building,” said Brent Smith, Cambridge’s chief fire prevention officer.

Hockey nets and a trailer were destroyed when the building burned, he said.